A Force Of Nature
by Babbling Polly Polliwog
Summary: A ninja fanfic between another of my OCs and my favorite Naruto character, Sasuke
1. Prologue

The day that Hisako Kazekayou came to the Hidden Leaf Village of Konoha was a strange day indeed. The trees whispered and moved, though there was no trace of even the faintest breeze. It was completely overcast, and yet the sky was as bright as day. And when the strange girl with red and black silk for hair came walking through the gates, little eddies of dust and leaves swirling at her feet, all stopped and stared. They were wondering if this lean, waif-like and ethereal maiden were a spirit of the wind herself. She had an air about her that commanded attention, despite her size. Her eyes burned like a fiery opal, constantly changing colors, shot through with white and gold and blue and green. She moved like a specter through the village and into the forest. People debated whether she was a ghost, a ninja, or both. She was only twelve at the time, and the fact that a girl of that age was traveling alone aroused suspicion. However, none had the courage to follow her, and she passed through unhindered.


	2. Chapter 1

As a matter of fact, Hisako was just a simple, lost orphan girl. She had been in a circus for the past eight years, until the ringmaster had been arrested and the group had broken up. Once again, she found herself on her own. She was tired and ready to pass out, and the apparent distrust of the villagers only made it worse. She went into the forest, found a nice high tree to climb, and fell asleep in it.

Team seven was on it's way back from training. Naruto, finally having gotten the hang of the running up trees stamina exercise, was running up and down every other tree. He came to a high one.

"Hey, Sakura, watch this! I'm going to climb this one in less than a minute!"

Sakura sighed and shook her head, and looked back at Sasuke, who was blank faced as usual. Suddenly, Naruto's voice filtered down from the treetops.

"Hey guys! There's some weird girl sleeping here!"

The three on the ground looked up in shock.

"What?!"

"I know, it's crazy, huh?! I'm going to wake her up!"

"No Naruto, don't-"

But it was too late. A surprised shriek issued from above and Naruto came flying out of the tree, barely landing on his feet. Seconds later, a girl about their age followed, falling much less gracefully, having been startled. When she landed, her leg bent the wrong way, and a sharp crack could be heard.

Sakura gasped and slapped Naruto, then hurried over with Kakashi to help the girl.

"Are you alright, child?"

The girl looked up, dazed.

"I think... I haven't had a fall that bad since I first started training... But it's all good, I'm alright."

She passed out in Kakashi's arms.

Hisako awoke in a hospital bed, with the people she had seen when she fell in the room with her.

"Hey sensei! She's awake!" shouted Naruto.

Hisako winced. The pink-haired girl sighed and walked over to Hisako's bedside.

"Hi. I'm Sakura, this is Sasuke, and the dope who woke you up in that tree is Naruto. Are you feeling okay?"

Hisako blinked and yawned.

"Um, yeah." she glanced at Sasuke, who seemed to be pointedly staring into space. "What happened to me?"

Sakura grimaced.

"Your leg is broken in three places."

Hisako groaned.

"Just out of curiosity, what kind of training were you talking about before?" Naruto was back.

"Acrobatics," Hisako responded, still annoyed with him.

"For what, exactly?" asked Sakura.

Hisako glanced at Sasuke again. He seemed to be listening now. He was really quite attractive. However, did she really want to tell the truth in front of these strangers? She sighed. People would have asked later on anyway.

"I was in a traveling circus."

Naruto's mouth dropped open and Sakura looked at her weirdly. Sasuke turned around.

"Are you an orphan?"

Hisako was pleasantly surprised by his voice.

"As a matter of fact, yes."

"Hmph."

"Really?" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yeah. Do you think three-year olds decide on their own to join a circus?"

At this point, Kakashi entered the room.

"Circus? Oh good, you're awake, kid."

"Yes. Is this Konoha?"

Sakura smiled at her.

"Yes. By the way what's your name?"

"Kazekayou, Hisako."

They all looked at each other.

"Alright," said Kakashi, " where did you say you were from?"

Hisako was quiet. Should she tell these people? Would they send her back? She would have to take a chance.

"Kusagakure."

"Ah, Hidden Grass Village?"

"Yes."

"Are you a genin?"

"Huh?"

"A ninja?"

"Not really, no."

"Oh really? I heard a lot of the girls in Kusagakure are kunoichi."

"Yeah, the ones in the Shiori clan. Not me."

"Are you Shiori?"

"I don't know. My parents died in a fire when I was three. I... Don't remember any outside family.."

Something about her tone of voice made them suspect that there was more to this girl. However, they didn't pry.

"Okay, Hisako," said Kakashi, "we'll just let you relax now."

"Okay." She watched them leave. Ninjas? Something stirred at the back of her mind, but it soon blurred out again as the pain from her leg clouded her mind.

"I wonder who her parents are," whispered Sakura, "or, er... were. Where is she going to stay?"

"Yeah," replied Naruto. "good question. Are they going to give her an apartment?"

"Well, think about it. She's not a shinobi, and she's from the circus. How would she pay for it? Besides, nobody wants to rent out apartments to underaged kids anymore, because of you."

"Hey!"

"Just stating the facts."

"I'm sorry, am I interrupting?"

The two of them jumped.

"Agh! Sensei!"

"Yeah. That's me. Listen, you three should probably go home. This girl, Hisako, needs time to rest and recover."

"So, I can be quiet!"

"well, to be honest, Naruto, if she wakes up and sees your face again, she might try to kill you. So I highly suggest that you go home. NOW."

"Huhhh, fine."

When Hisako awoke later, her leg didn't hurt as much. Which, she guessed, was probably a good thing. _Ok, muscles_, she thought, screwing her eyes shut and stretching, _don't fail me now_! She opened her eyes, and was surprised to see a vaguely familiar face from her past. Sarutobi, the Third Hokage. She sat bolt upright. He had come to a few of the circus performances when the troupe had been commissioned for important events back in Kusagakure. And apparently, given the warm way he was smiling at her, he remembered her as well. She gulped.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, Kazekayou-san, but weren't you that little daredevil high up on the wire

three years ago at that festival in Kusagakure?"

He does remember.

"Yes, sir."

"I understand it is a bit late, but that was a marvelous performance. To see such balance, coordination and skill in such a young child is something to marvel at." He turned to Kakashi, who was still there as well. "This girl was doing all sorts of crazy flips and gymnastics on a tightrope. Never fell or wobbled once. And she did it without a net."

Hisako blushed. These people were strangers to her. It was strange to be recognized. She'd typically stayed out of the public eye, as ringmaster Shoryu had always advised her to do so, giving vague warnings that her past was always closer than she thought.

"Interesting," said Kakashi. "How old did you say you are, Kazekayou-san?"

"Twelve."

He whistled.

"You're right, old man. That is impressive. I think the only youngling I've seen in this village with that much potential was It-" he stopped.

Sarutobi nodded. A serious pause hung in the air.

Hisako swallowed, not sure if she should break the silence or not.

"Um, what's going to happen to me after my leg gets fixed?"

"Well now, that all depends. Why don't you tell us first while you're all the way here in Konoha instead of with your troupe."

"Well... the ringmaster got arrested, or at least that's what everybody was saying, but I'm not so sure... I thought I heard someone mention the name Matsumoto also, but I don't know if I heard right. But anyway, he's gone, and evrybody just split up, and I got left behind, and then I remembered that Shoryu-san (the ringmaster) told me that if something like that ever happened, I was supposed to come here, to Konoha."

Another long silence ensued.

"Curious..." muttered Sarutobi. "Matsumoto... where have I heard that name before?"

"They're the crime lords in Kusagakure." It was Kakashi.

Hisako was surprised.

"Have you been to Kusagakure?"

"Once or twice, on different missions. Back alleys are definitely not the safest place to be at night over there."

"Duh. it's just general knowledge that you shouldn't go walking around in back alleys. Anywahere, really."

Kakashi smiled, although she couldn't see it under the mask.

"I like this girl. She's a smart one."

"She is indeed. Kazekayou-san, are you planning on staying here in Konoha?"

Well now. Hisako hadn't really thought about it, but... what choice did she have? She had to live somewhere.

"Yes."

"Good. I understand this might be a bit difficult, but do you remember at all what your parents' names were? We need it for information purposes only."

"Um... I think my mother's name was Yoko?"

"That's good. And your father?"

"Ro- something or other. I don't remember, because my mother never really called him by his name that often."

"Well, at least it's a start. And your last name is Kazekayou, correct?"

Hisako scratched her head.

"Actually, that's kind of complicated."

"Oh?"

"Yes. You see, Kazekayou was just the last name the Shoryu-san gave me when he took me in. Apparently, my real last name would put me in danger if I used it."

"I see... curious."

Hisako sat there awkwardly for a while. Kakashi coughed, and Sarutobi snapped out of his reverie.

"Well, Kazekayou-san, what do you plan to do while you're here in Konoha?"

"I don't know. What do you suggest?"

"I would suggest that you begin training as a ninja. You certainly seem to be cut out for it. DO you have combat experience?"

"Yeah, self-defense mainly, but yes."

"Well, how about this. If you're interested, let us know, and then when you're released, we'll give you a physical exam, and get you started with training. How does that sound? Do you want to give it a try?"

Hisako thought about it. What did she have to lose? She couldn't stay in the hospital forever.

"Okay."

"Good!" Sarutobi patted her on the back. "We look forward to you joining the ranks of Konoha shinobi."

Hisako smiled weakly, the pain starting to return.

"Great."


	3. Chapter 2

Hisako found her room frequented by several ninjas, or genin, her age. They all wanted to meet her and wanted to know what she was doing and who she was. She didn't tell them very much, however. Some people asked where she would be staying when she was released, and she had to admit that she didn't know. Nobody really wanted someone as peculiar as her to stay with them, so nobody volunteered. Disapproving parents turned their noses up at the mention of her. They didn't see Hisako as a good influence, much like Naruto. However, they had really had no time to actually evaluate her in person, because she had been confined to her bed in the hospital.

Hisako's leg healed remarkably fast. In only one and a half weeks, she was able to leave the hospital, and attended the academy, taking in all the new information that she needed to know, while she was taken in by Tsunade temporarily. In another two weeks, she was off of her crutches. A couple of days after that, it was time for her physical exam. After doing daily stretches and exercises, she was ready.

The first parts of the exam were quite standard: height, weight, and other things like that. Next came the interesting part. She was taken to the training field, where an obstacle course had been constructed for training. One of the instructors-a man with tiny-lensed sunglasses-was waiting impatiently.

She trotted over to him hurriedly.

"Alright, Kazekayou, let's get moving. I haven't got all day!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Alright. This, as you can see, is an obstacle course, designed to test your speed, strength, agility, and stamina. You will start from here-" he indicated a series of rings on the ground, "and end over there." He pointed to a mud pit with a rope over it. "Classic obstacle course. Anyway, are you ready to begin?"

"Um, yeah. I think so."

Hisako walked over to the first point.

"Alright. Ready, set, GO!"

Hisako took off like a speeding bullet, dancing nimbly in and out of the hoops on the ground, jumped over the 4-foot hurdles with ease, and continued racing on. An increasing number of genin gathered to watch her performance, including Team 7.

"Holy crap!" Naruto said excitedly to Sakura and Sasuke. "She's good!"

They watched the girl duck and skid underneath a wooden bar in the way, jumping back up again with perfect composure, not caring about all the dirt that seemed to be gathering on her. She crawled underneath the barbed wire fence, practically dashed up the climbing wall and down the other side, and leaped about 5 feet in the air to avoid running into something, landing perfectly on a pole.

"Oh," whispered Sakura. "Here comes the tricky part."

But apparently, Hisako didn't think so, for she gracefully hopped from pole to pole before landing gracefully on the ground. All the genin watched, stunned, as this strange newcomer sped up a ramp and jumped for the taut rope that she was supposed to traverse, hand over hand. There was a collective gasp as she did something nobody had ever done before: she swung herself up in the air and let go of the rope, sticking her landing on the rope and running across it as if she were running on the ground.

"Woow..." breathed Sakura. "She wasn't kidding when she said she used to be in a circus."

Sasuke and Naruto nodded, Naruto's mouth hanging open in amazement. Meanwhile, Hisako hopped up to grab the pull-up bar, and did 10 pull-ups in under a minute. She dropped and ran towards the mud pit, jumping and grabbing the rope. She sailed through the air, alighting on the ground as if she weighed no more than a feather.

She heard a beep. The instructor stopped the timer. He appeared to be shocked.

"... Very... good, Kazekayou. 3 and a half minutes flat."

Sasuke internally gasped. That girl had broken his record of 3 minutes and 45 seconds. Apparently, many of his fellow ninjas realized that as well, because for the most part, they just stared at Hisako in stunned silence. And suddenly, they erupted into cheers. Hisako blushed, and tried awkwardly to look off in another direction. Her wandering eyes met Sasuke's cold, calculating black ones and their eyes locked for a minute. She wished she could see the wheels spinning in his head. God, the way he was staring at her like that.. She felt a bit intimidated and creeped out. She pulled her gaze away and shook her head slightly to snap herself out of her reverie. The instructor was smiling and applauding.

She had definitely made a lasting impression.


End file.
